ADDITIVE MANUFACTURINGSECTION TITLE
components on the FX20 3D printer. Vega is a carbon fi bre-fi lled PEKK fi lament that is designed to not only off er exceptional strength but also weight
3D printed stainless steel pipe manifold
reduction, cost effi ciency and lead time benefi ts for customers. “Vega marries a function the aerospace sector needs with the form that it expects,” Leong explained. “T e material has excellent surface quality that exceeds most high- temperature plastics used for 3D printing, while also off ering a smooth black matte fi nish. Vega has a lot of in-demand properties, such as FST resistance, minimal warpage, and fewer defects. Most 3D printing right now in aerospace is limited to non-critical, non-structural parts, like a doorknob. With Vega,
3D printed antenna clusters for communication satellites
aerospace manufacturers can start to start to take 3D printing with CFR to structural applications, like a seat bracket, and hopefully in the future to critical- structural parts like a fl at bracket.”
AT A GLANCE A
t Formnext 2023, the meta- trend of sustainability was in the focus of more and
more visitors and exhibitors. Naturally, many of the next- level developments and product announcements at the show centred around this theme, from more environmentally-friendly materials and processes to innovative component designs for lighter and more effi cient parts. For instance, 6K Additive
and Metal Powder Works (MPW) announced a new partnership to produce pure copper and copper alloys that will enable the production of important powders like copper-nickel and bronze alloys for 3D printing. The combination of MPW’s DirectPowder process and 6K’s UniMelt microwave plasma system promises to deliver economic advantages, faster time to market, and more sustainable production from both feedstock creation and the production of these materials. 6K’s proprietary UniMelt
system is currently the world’s only microwave production-scale plasma system, off ering a highly uniform and precise plasma zone, zero contamination and high throughput capabilities. Elsewhere, Oerlikon AM
showcased one of the latest iterations of its 3D printed antenna clusters for Airbus, which will be used in a series of next-generation communication satellites soon to be orbiting Earth. This marks an important milestone in the decade-long partnership between the companies, with additive manufacturing playing a key role in delivering benefi ts such as weight reduction to vital space applications. Formlabs, meanwhile, announced
it the ‘reinvention’ of post-processing for Selective Laser Sintering (SLS) 3D printing with the launch of the Fuse Blast – a fully automated part cleaning and polishing system. Promising to drastically lower labour and overhead costs, reduce post-
processing time by 80% and deliver customer-grade parts in just 15 minutes, the system will support the fl eet of Fuse printers currently utilised across the automotive, manufacturing and engineering sectors, among others. In addition to effi ciency improvements, the system’s improved packing algorithm for better packing density reduces powder waste by 42% on average. Other notable systems on
display included Renishaw’s new Tempus technology and RenAM Ultra metal 3D printing system, which could potentially halve build times across the entire cycle thanks to a novel scanning algorithm, as well as MX3D’s robotic Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing (WAAM) technology for the production of large-scale metal parts. Sticking with the theme of robots, Meltio’s new plug-and-play robotic integration for metal 3D printing within automotive and aerospace also warrants a mention. ●
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